“Declan Burke is his own genre. The Lammisters dazzles, beguiles and transcends. Virtuoso from start to finish.” – Eoin McNamee “This bourbon-smooth riot of jazz-age excess, high satire and Wodehouse flamboyance is a pitch-perfect bullseye of comic brilliance.” – Irish Independent Books of the Year 2019 “This rapid-fire novel deserves a place on any bookshelf that grants asylum to PG Wodehouse, Flann O’Brien or Kyril Bonfiglioli.” – Eoin Colfer, Guardian Best Books of the Year 2019 “The funniest book of the year.” – Sunday Independent “Declan Burke is one funny bastard. The Lammisters ... conducts a forensic analysis on the anatomy of a story.” – Liz Nugent “Burke’s exuberant prose takes centre stage … He plays with language like a jazz soloist stretching the boundaries of musical theory.” – Totally Dublin “A mega-meta smorgasbord of inventive language ... linguistic verve not just on every page but every line.Irish Times “Above all, The Lammisters gives the impression of a writer enjoying himself. And so, dear reader, should you.” – Sunday Times “A triumph of absurdity, which burlesques the literary canon from Shakespeare, Pope and Austen to Flann O’Brien … The Lammisters is very clever indeed.” – The Guardian

Friday, November 16, 2007

“Ya Wanna Do It Here Or Down The Station, Punk?” # 973: Peter Murphy

Yep, it’s rubber-hose time, folks: a rapid-fire Q&A for those shifty-looking usual suspects ...
What crime novel would you most like to have written?
Oh boy. A photo-finish between FROM HELL by Alan Moore, THE BLACK DAHLIA by James Ellroy, and Borges’ story ‘Death And The Compass’.
Who do you read for guilty pleasures?
There’s no such thing as a guilty pleasure when it comes to books. Crime novels, sci-fi, music books, comic books, journalism, ‘mainstream’ literature, ‘slipstream’ literature, biographies, tales of the macabre … MAUS is just as valid as MOBY DICK.
Most satisfying writing moment?
That Twilight Zone thing where your peripheral vision goes fuzzy and time buggers off …
The best Irish crime novel is …?
THE MURDERS IN THE RUE MORGUE. Poe was melancholic, alcoholic and black-humoured, so he qualifies as Irish by default.
What Irish crime novel would make a great movie?
I think Mike McCormack’s short story ‘A Is For Axe’ from GETTING IT IN THE HEAD would be a hoot.
Worst / best thing about being a writer?
Worst – it’s a profoundly antisocial occupation. Best – see above.
The pitch for your next novel is …?
Black and sticky.
Who are you reading right now?
THE NEW GRANTA BOOK OF AMERICAN SHORT STORY, edited by Richard Ford. They’re all great, but every fourth or fifth story just about makes my heart stop. And I’m re-reading A GOOD MAN IS HARD TO FIND by Flannery O’Connor, ’cos she's the queen.
The three best words to describe your own writing are …?
Blood, sweat and tears.

Peter Murphy’s JOHN THE REVELATOR will be published by Faber & Faber and Harcourt (US) in 2009.

1 comment:

Anonymous said...

I'm really, really looking forward to Peter's book even if it's an age away. Damn you publishing world and your crazy advance schedules. Damn you to hell!